Modern wireless headsets provide greater convenience and safety to the users of such devices as office telephones, by allowing the user partially or completely hands free operation of the telephone. By the use of such devices, office workers may simultaneously speak to customers or business associates upon the telephone while making entries into a computer, using other office equipment and other diverse tasks. Such headsets normally comprise some sort of head band or ear clip to retain the headset in the proper position, a microphone located near the mouth, and such wireless equipment as is necessary to communicate with a base unit or master unit located at or on the office telephone, cellular telephone, or similar device.
Bluetooth (Trademark of Bluetooth SIG, Inc) is a rapidly evolving wireless communications standard for small devices having link and application layer definitions for communications protocols, bandwidths and so on. Bluetooth enabled devices use the 2.4 to 2.4835 GHz band in most nations, a loosely regulated band of the frequency spectrum allowing high bandwidth, short range communications using 625 microsecond time division packets. Within the overall band, frequency hopping among 79 frequencies at a full duplex 1600 hops per second provides the ability to operate in a network of similar Bluetooth enabled devices with multiple simultaneous connections established.
This ability to allow multiple simultaneous connections is particularly important in the Bluetooth enabled workplace. For example, it would be pointless to have multiple Bluetooth enabled devices attempting access to a Bluetooth enabled printer if only one at a time may actually connect with the printer. Similarly, a workplace using multiple Bluetooth enabled headsets would drown in a sea of babble if different frequencies between master units and headsets were not available for each headset user. On the other hand, the ability offered by Bluetooth to handle in one network more than one connection allows each headset user to communicate properly with their headset's master unit, or to use the headset for short range office communications with other Bluetooth enabled headsets, master units and other devices.
This ability requires several types of identification, called “access procedures” in the Bluetooth specification core documents. Two in particular are important in the context of the present invention. The first type of identification is the “page/page scan/response”, used to establish communications between two Bluetooth enabled devices. In essence, the Bluetooth device initiating the contact will send out a packet identifying the device with which it desires contact and a communications channel will be opened up. The second type of identification is the “inquire scan/inquire response” in which a Bluetooth unit attempts to determine in fact what other Bluetooth enabled devices are within radio range, and to establish a “pairing” with the other unit. The second type is importance in that certain security keys and clock offsets are exchanged at that time, allowing the two units to communicate securely thereafter.
A number of Bluetooth related patent applications may be found in the art, some of which relate to the first type of situation, that is, to establishing a connection between two Bluetooth devices which have already established a “pairing” with each other.
Publication No. 2002/0115425 dated Aug. 22, 2002 to Olson et al for WIRELESS DEVICE AUTHENTICATION AT MUTUAL REDUCED TRANSMIT POWER teaches that Bluetooth enabled devices may be “authenticated” at a lower power setting. One advantage of such a low power authentication is that it reduces the chance that the security keys and clock offsets might be intercepted by a Bluetooth enabled device set to eavesdrop. More importantly, for devices such as headsets which have minimal user interfaces, the “power down” setting (reduced power, NOT power off) renders the device only able to communicate with other units at extremely close range, such as one meter. The proposed advantage, and also the disadvantage of such a system, is that Bluetooth registration will only occur with the given, close proximity unit.
Publication No. 2002/0111140 dated Aug. 15, 2002 to Kim for WIRELESS HEADSET CAPABLE OF AUTOMATIC LINK CONNECTION AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING THE SAME teaches a headset having a folding microphone tube. When the microphone tube is unfolded, the device is turned on and Bluetooth registration occurs automatically, followed by an inquiry of the other type to determine if any connection is desired.
Publication No. 2002/0111138 dated Aug. 15, 2002 to Park for LINK CONNECTION METHOD BETWEEN COMMUNICATION TERMINALS EQUIPPED WITH BLUETOOTH WIRELESS DEVICES teaches automatic attempts to “re-link” Bluetooth devices (re-establish a connection) even when power is not turned on and off, such as after one device is taken out of range of the other device. Thus, this device does not deal with inquiry mode operations in which two or more Bluetooth units pair.
Publication No. 2002/0132582 dated Sep. 19, 2002 to Mooney for CELL PHONE EXTENSION USING WIRELESS PICONET teaches that two or more Bluetooth enabled cell phones might be linked by the Bluetooth protocol, one to act as a gatekeeper and the other one to act as a terminal.
Publication No. 2002/0115471 dated Aug. 22, 2002 to De Loye et al for METHOD FOR HANDLING CALLS RECEIVED AT A WIRELESS MOBILE TERMINAL COMPRISING A SHORT-RANGE INTERFACE CORRESPONDING WIRELESS MOBILE TERMINAL AND COMPUTER PROGRAM teaches use of devices having differing capabilities, such as using a headset to re-transmit print requests to a printer.
Publication No. 2002/0082057 dated Jun. 27, 2002 to Kim for SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR UTILIZING MOBILE COMMUNICATION TERMINAL AS WIRELESS HEADSET allows Bluetooth links to a PC, for use of a wireless headset with Internet Telephony.
Publication No. 2002/0045454 dated Apr. 18, 2002 to Iwata for RADIO COMMUNICATION CONNECTION DESTINATION SPECIFYING METHOD deals with infrared and radio links using the Bluetooth protocol.
Publication No. 2002/0021800 dated Feb. 21, 2002 to Bodley for HEADSET COMMUNICATION UNIT teaches a design for a hinge mechanism on a headset.
Publication No. 2002/0031645 dated Oct. 18, 2001 to Jarrett for MULTI-PURPOSE MOBILE CORDLESS PHONE SYSTEM teaches connection of fixed phones and cordless telephones or cellular telephones using protocols such as Bluetooth.
Finally, the only issued patent, U.S. Pat. No. 6,255,800 issued Jul. 3, 2001 to Bork for BLUETOOTH ENABLED MOBILE DEVICE CHARGING CRADLE AND SYSTEM teaches a charging cradle for cell phones and the like, the charging cradle is connected to a PC and may be Bluetooth enabled.
In general, Bluetooth enabled devices suffer from complexity of operation in terms of pairing the device to previously unknown Bluetooth devices. Many Bluetooth devices require that the user must access a sequence of menus on some type of LCD or CRT display, push buttons to indicate what is desired, and only then can pairing occur.
It would be advantageous to provide a method by which Bluetooth enabled devices could be easily paired with other Bluetooth enabled devices, yet with a minimal user interface that allowed smaller, lighter weight, less expensive and simpler devices.